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Panther vs Sherman: Battle of the Bulge 1944 (Duel) | 
 enlarge | Author: Steven Zaloga
Creators: Jim Laurier, Howard Gerrard
Publisher: Osprey Publishing
Category: Book
List Price: $17.95
Buy New: $10.65
You Save: $7.30 (41%)
New (27) Used (7) from $9.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 11020
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 80
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 9.6 x 7 x 0.3
ISBN: 184603292X
Dewey Decimal Number: 940
EAN: 9781846032929
ASIN: 184603292X
Publication Date: September 23, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW
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Product Description
In this book Steven J Zaloga offers a fascinating comparison of the combat performance of the two most important tanks involved in the crucial fighting of 1944, the Sherman and the Panther. Examining the design and development of both tanks, Zaloga notes the obvious superiority that the Panther had over the Sherman and how the highly engineered German tank was eventually beaten back, not necessarily by the improvements made to the Sherman, but rather by the superior numbers of tanks that the Allies were able to put into the field.
Putting the reader into the heart of this battle between quality and quantity Zaloga examines the tactical intricacies of the battles between these two rivals. Using a compelling account of the ferocious fighting in the Ardennes region to explain the successes and failures of each tank he also highlights the fact that a tank can only be as good as its crew, weighing up the impact of low morale, high cost and mediocre crew training on the Panthers superiority. Packed with full-colour battlescenes, technical drawings, photographs, digital gunsight views, extracts from crew training manuals and real combat reports, this book brings to life the titanic battles between the Sherman and the Panther.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
Highly recommended! November 5, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
If you are an old soldier or a history/war buff, I highly recommend this book. Wish I'd had it as a resource before I published my book--Into the Breach: The Life and Times of the 740th Tank Battalion in World War II. My congratulations to Steve Zogala. Paul L. Pearson
Superb book, a sharp counter to the usual whining about the inferiority of the M4 Sherman against German tanks November 3, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
In recent years, it has become common to read all sorts of stuff about how the M4 Sherman was an inferior tank that cost American lives in WWII against "superior" German tanks. Probably the most egregious of these writings has been "Death Traps" by Belton Cooper. As a tank repair liaison officer, Cooper's WWII experience was undoubtedly skewed towards seeing only Sherman tanks that had been punctured and burned out by German anti-tank fire, but his book is nevertheless filled with omissions of fact and historical inaccuracies. In spite of this, "Death Traps" has come to be quoted increasingly by amateur historians who portray the M4 Sherman as an inferior tank.
And so, this book by Steven Zaloga comes as a welcome antidote to address many of the myths that have sprung up about the M4 and its supposed inferiority to the German Panther and Tiger tanks.
The M4 obviously had less armor and less cannon firepower than the Panther and Tigers. But it did destroy or disable a great many of both tanks in countless nearly forgotten small unit tank battles. It had many advantages over the German tanks, most importantly its greater numbers, greater reliability, and faster firing cycle.
Zaloga also points out many of the myths of Panther superiority. Chief among the Panther's weaknesses was the weak side and rear and top armor. The Panthers also stored their ammunition in the side sponsons, which could be penetrated by M4 cannon fire, and result in catastrophic ammunition fires (Zaloga points out that ammunition fires/explosions were the main cause of all tanks "brewing up" - catching fire - not the use of gasoline engines; German tanks had gasoline engines also). The Panther was far less reliable, and most importantly, the Germans never mastered the ability to produce it in great numbers, all of which reduced its overall effectiveness because there just weren't very many of them and they couldn't travel very far before breaking down.
This book points out the often ignored improvements made to the M4 Shermans as the war progressed, which improved its survivability and firepower. The 76mm cannon was better than the 75mm cannon, and late in the war, some high velocity anti-armor rounds became available (although not in great number) that were even better. Wet storage reduced the chances of a Sherman "brewing up" with a catastrophic ammunition fire as the result of a penetrating hit from 60-80% to 10-15%. Introduction of the "duckbill" treads reduced ground pressure and improved traction. The ultimate form of the M4 was the M4AE8, which had wider tracks and extra armor as well as the 76mm gun.
Zaloga describes some of the combat during the Battle of the Bulge. There were numerous engagements in which the American tank crew spotted the Germans first and so were able to "fire first" and take out a number of the Panthers. Conversely when the Germans spotted the American tanks first, usually the American tanks were knocked out. Real tank to tank combat thus had less to do with technical tank superiority than with which tank spotted the enemy first and was able to get off the first shots. No tank ever does well in an ambush, in other words. American tank crews frequently had an advantage in being much better trained than the great majority of the German tank crews, who had the bare minimum in training due to the general lack of fuel and ammunition in Germany at the time.
There is only a brief mention in this book of the series of tank battles at Arracourt in September 1944, which Zaloga says was the largest U.S. tank engagement in WWII. It is now a nearly universally forgotten battle, considered only to be a part of Patton's successful drive through the south of France, and Zaloga does not go into the details of this battle here (Zaloga covers this battle in one of his other books). At the Battle of Arracourt, U.S. 75mm Shermans of the 4th Armored Division took on a counterattacking force of over 300 German tanks, most of them Panthers. They ended up destroying some 285 German tanks and armored vehicles, losing 25 tanks and 7 tank destroyers.
Those are the sort of numbers that the detractors of the M4 have conveniently forgotten, and explain why the M4 was so important to the U.S. victory in Europe, and why it was not the helpless victim of superior German tanks, as is so often incorrectly stated nowadays.
Full of insights and the best of the Osprey "duel" series so far October 7, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
In this readable, carefully-researched book, author Steven Zaloga carefully picks apart the conventional view that the Panther was superior to the Sherman. To begin with, the primary role of tanks was not tank-to-tank combat. When tank duels occurred they were decided more by who got the first shot than by gun power or armor protection. By late 1944, American crews generally had an edge in experience and training. The Sherman had a better secondary armament than the Panther. The Sherman typically had a faster engagement cycle than the Panther because the Sherman's turrret traversed faster, and the Sherman's gunner had his own periscopic sight; the Panther's gunner, whose head barely fit in the turret, sat blind until he had orders to begin looking for the target. In combat, tank engagements were usually small, quick and decisive; victory went to the side that saw the enemy first, and fired first.
By late 1944, the majority of Panther crews were relatively green and inadequately trained. Fuel scarcity aggravated the problem of deficient crew training, and imposed limitations in combat, too. The Panther's armor was often brittle because the vital alloy molybdenum was increasingly scarce in Germany's war-ravaged, bombed-out manufacturing economy. Foreign workers may have sabotaged fuel and lubrication systems in Panthers. For these reasons and more, the Panther's brilliant design was more a matter of theory than reality.
If, like me, you are something of a tankaholic, you will savor this vintage bottle as a rare break from the cheap stuff. And if someone you love is a tankaholic, there could be no better gift than this fascinating glimpse of late World War II armored warfare.
another home run for Zaloga... October 1, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
First, I'll admit a prejudice towards Steve Zaloga's works. He is one of my favorite authors on military history and technology. In this volume Zaloga has added another excellent volume to his works on WW2 US armored forces. Other Osprey volumes include Battle Orders series books on US tank battalions, US armored divisions, and tank destroyer battalions, a Warrior series book on US tank crewman, Vanguard books on the M4 (76mm), and other vehicles. Each book adds more material to the overall story of American armored troops in World War Two. Taken together Zaloga's volumes add up to a massive history of the US military forces in Europe that faced the German army. This "Duel" series volume deals specifically with the use of the later editions of Sherman tanks against the massive German attack know as the Battle of the Bulge. Both vehicles are examined from the technical standpoint as well as their use in the tactical situation on the battlefield. Mr. Zaloga defrocks the myths that only superior US numbers won the war or that it always took five Shermans to kill a German Panther tank. This book looks at the various factors that allowed the Germans to win the statistics (bigger, heavier, etc.) but allowed the US Army to win the war. This book is well written and very readable. The pictures are clear and in many cases uncommon. The color illustration add appropriate content to the text. More than worth the money, highly recommended.
 Well done! Makes you wonder though - September 24, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I really like Zaloga's objective approach to his subjects and this one is just as non-biased. Nice graphics, few typos, great research overall. One of the better "Duel" books.
The book does make me wonder why the U.S. didn't use the superb British Firefly during the Ardennes Battles after it proved its worth during the Normandy conflicts. If Zaloga reads this, maybe he would know?
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